JPH10207554A - Flow rate controller for fluid, and manufacture of semiconductor device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a flow rate controller capable of achieving stable fluid supply control in a short time, simplifying constitution simple and reducing cost by detecting variation in the pressure on an entrance side in which fluid flows and performing the control according to the detection result. SOLUTION: This controller has a pressure control mechanism 1 which detects the pressure variation on the gas entrance side and controls the pressure. Further, the controller has a flow rate sensor 2 which detects variation in flow rate. Then the pressure variation detected by the pressure control mechanism 1 and the flow rate variation detected by the flow rate sensor 2 are sent as signals to a central control mechanism 4 respectively. The central control mechanism 4 processes the signals received from the pressure control mechanism 1 and flow rate sensor 2 and sends the result to a flow rate control mechanism 3 to perform flow rate control. Consequently, stable supply of fluid such as gas can securely by controlled in a short time. Therefore, this controller can be used to form a film with good uniformity as to gas flow rate control for thin-film formation at the time of the manufacture of, for example, a semiconductor.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a fluid flow control device and a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device using the flow control device. INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be used for controlling various fluids in, for example, a semiconductor device manufacturing process. Further, in a semiconductor device manufacturing process, the present invention can be used as a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device in which a gas flow control technique at the time of film formation of a film forming apparatus or the like is improved.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional technique of this type, for example, a technique for controlling a gas flow rate in a process of manufacturing a semiconductor device such as an IC, a flow rate fluctuation at the time of startup due to a pressure fluctuation at an inlet side where gas flows in. There is a problem that has occurred.

For example, when a gas is used to form a film by vapor phase growth, the temperature of the gas passing through the sensor fluctuates due to the pressure fluctuation on the gas inlet side, and a reliable value cannot be detected. Occasionally, overshoot occurred, and it took time to control the flow rate to an appropriate level.

If a process using a gas is performed in such a state, a problem such as poor film uniformity may occur in a semiconductor device manufacturing line, for example, when a thin film is formed, which may be a problem.

[0005] As a conventional technique, Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. Hei 3-11566.
No. 3 discloses a flow control of a CVD apparatus, and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-320916 discloses a technique for preventing a gas or an excitation power from becoming excessive following a gas amount at the time of forming a thin film. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-190335 proposes technologies each having a function of adjusting the flow rate distribution in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle, but does not solve the above problems.

[0006]

As described above, in the prior art, a flow rate fluctuation at the rise due to a pressure fluctuation on the inlet side where a fluid such as a gas flows occurs, so that it takes time until a stable fluid supply is performed. For this reason, for example, non-uniformity may occur in the formed thin film.

[0007] The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and achieves a stable and reliable supply of fluid in a short period of time, and is simple in structure and advantageous in cost. And a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device using the same.

[0008]

A fluid flow control device according to the present invention is characterized in that a change in pressure at an inlet side where a fluid flows in is detected, and control is performed based on the detection result. .

According to a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device according to the present invention, in a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device having a step of performing a process by flowing a fluid, a change in pressure at an inlet side where the fluid flows is detected, and based on the detection result. Control.

According to the present invention, the fluctuation of the pressure on the inlet side where the fluid flows in is detected and the control is performed based on the detection result. The inconvenience caused by the flow rate fluctuation can be prevented.

Thus, the supply of a stable fluid such as gas can be reliably controlled in a short time. Therefore, for example, the gas flow rate control for forming a thin film at the time of manufacturing a semiconductor device can be suitably used to form a film with good uniformity.

If the pressure fluctuation and the flow rate control are separated from each other, the pressure fluctuation occurring during the operation of the flow rate control mechanism such as the outlet valve may be picked up. According to the present invention, it is possible to control both signals in a concentrated manner, so that a configuration free from such a risk can be provided.

The present invention is simple in construction and advantageous in terms of cost. For example, when a fluid supply line is constructed, each flow control mechanism can be formed to have a pressure control mechanism.
It is also advantageous in terms of costs such as capital investment.

[0014] Further, even in the case of using a liquefied gas or the like, it is advantageous because the gas can be supplied without unnecessary pressure reduction.

[0015]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described, and specific preferred embodiments will be described. However, as a matter of course, the present invention is not limited to the following specific examples.

The fluid flow control device of the present invention is configured to detect a change in pressure on the inlet side into which the fluid flows, and to perform control based on the detection result. In this case, the change in pressure on the inlet side is detected. Control can be performed based on the detected result so that the pressure becomes constant.

At this time, the control may be performed by a control signal based on a detection result obtained by detecting a change in pressure on the inlet side into which the fluid flows. The control signal can be used to control a flow control mechanism (such as a valve, which appropriately adjusts the opening of the valve) for controlling the flow rate. This control signal is digitally processed, and can be configured to be useful for, for example, abnormality detection during flow rate control. For example, a signal may be displayed or a warning sound may be emitted to assist in abnormality detection.
Further, the signal can be transmitted to the outside by communication.

According to the method of manufacturing a semiconductor of the present invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device having a step of performing a process by flowing a fluid, wherein a change in pressure on an inlet side where the fluid flows is detected and control is performed based on the detection result. In this case as well, control can be performed so that the pressure becomes constant based on the detection result. In addition, various forms applicable to the fluid flow control device of the present invention can be adopted.

The method of manufacturing a semiconductor according to the present invention can be suitably applied when the fluid is a gas used in manufacturing a semiconductor device. For example, the gas (C
(A source gas in the case of deposition of VD or the like) or a reactive gas for etching. The present invention can also be used for controlling the flow rate of a liquid such as a cleaning process and a wet etching process.

Embodiment 1 FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing the operating principle and basic configuration of this embodiment. FIG. 2 shows a specific system configuration diagram. This embodiment shows gas flow control used in a semiconductor device manufacturing process, and can be used for gas flow control when a thin film is formed by vapor phase growth such as CVD during semiconductor device manufacturing. is there.

Referring to FIG. This embodiment detects a pressure fluctuation, in particular, a pressure fluctuation on the gas inlet side,
Based on this, a pressure control mechanism 1 for adjusting the pressure is provided. Specifically, in the pressure control mechanism 1, a change in pressure is monitored and detected by a piezoelectric element, and at the same time, in this example, a path of a pipe is changed to adjust the pressure. .

Further, this embodiment has a flow rate sensor 2 for detecting a change in the flow rate. Specifically, a change in the flow rate is detected based on a change in the temperature fluctuated by the flow of the gas.

The pressure fluctuation detected by the pressure control mechanism 1;
The flow rate change detected by the flow rate sensor 2 is sent to the central control mechanism 4 as a signal.

The central control mechanism 4 processes signals from the pressure control mechanism 1 and the flow rate sensor 2 and sends them to the flow rate control mechanism 3 (here, a valve) to control the flow rate. Here, specifically, the flow rate is controlled by changing the opening degree of the valve.

The signal of the pressure fluctuation can be digitally processed and displayed on a display so that the signal can be visually recognized and abnormality can be detected.

Referring to FIG. The operation of the pressure control mechanism 1 is mainly performed by the pressure control unit 10 shown in the specific system configuration diagram of FIG. The operation of the flow rate sensor 2 is mainly performed by the illustrated sensor unit 20. In addition, the flow control mechanism 3
Is mainly performed by the valve unit 30 shown in the figure.

The pressure control unit 10 is disposed on the gas inlet side, and the sensor unit 20 and the valve unit 30 are each disposed in a pipe through which gas flows.

In the present embodiment, as described above, the fluctuation of the pressure on the inlet side where the gas flows in is detected by the sensor of the pressure control mechanism 1, and the control is performed by a signal based on the detection result. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the inconvenience caused by the fluctuation of the flow rate at the rise due to the pressure fluctuation on the inlet side where the gas flows. That is, stable gas supply,
Control can be performed reliably in a short time. Therefore, it can be used for controlling the gas flow rate for forming a thin film during the manufacture of a semiconductor device, and a good-quality film with good uniformity can be achieved.

In the present embodiment, the central control mechanism 4 centrally controls both the signal of the pressure fluctuation detected by the pressure control mechanism 1 and the signal of the flow control based on the detection of the flow sensor 2. Therefore, there is no inconvenience such as an increase in pressure fluctuation.

The present embodiment is simple in structure and advantageous in cost, and can be formed so that each flow control mechanism has a pressure control mechanism when the gas supply line is constructed, so that capital investment and other costs can be reduced. Can also be reduced.

In addition, even when using a liquefied gas, for example, it is advantageous because gas can be supplied without unnecessary pressure reduction.

[0032]

As described above, the fluid flow rate control device and the semiconductor device manufacturing method according to the present invention can achieve stable and stable fluid supply in a short time and can be achieved in terms of structure. It is simple and has the effect of being advantageous in cost.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a basic operation and a basic configuration of a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a specific system configuration according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... pressure control mechanism, 2 ... flow rate sensor, 3
..Flow control mechanism, 4 central control mechanism, 10 ...
Pressure control unit, 20 ... Sensor unit, 30
... Valve unit (flow control mechanism).

Claims (9)

[Claims] An apparatus for controlling a flow rate of a fluid, comprising detecting a change in pressure on an inlet side into which the fluid flows, and performing control based on a result of the detection. 2. The fluid flow control device according to claim 1, wherein a change in pressure on the inlet side into which the fluid flows is detected, and control is performed so as to maintain a constant pressure based on the detection result. 3. The flow rate control of a fluid according to claim 2, wherein the control is performed by a control signal based on a detection result obtained by detecting a change in pressure on an inlet side into which the fluid flows. apparatus. 4. The fluid flow control device according to claim 3, wherein the control signal controls a flow control mechanism that controls a flow rate based on the control signal. 5. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the control signal is digitally processed. 6. A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device having a step of performing a process by flowing a fluid, wherein a change in pressure on an inlet side where the fluid flows is detected, and control is performed based on the detection result. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device. 7. The method of manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 6, wherein a change in pressure on the inlet side where the fluid flows is detected, and control is performed so as to maintain a constant pressure based on the detection result. 8. The method according to claim 6, wherein the fluid is a gas used in manufacturing a semiconductor device. 9. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 8, wherein said gas is a gas used for vapor phase growth.